A ‘Th!nk and Dr!ve’ campaign for road
distractions was organized by the Advertising and Public Relations
specialization of the Media Department at Manipal University, Dubai on 10th
April 2012. This campaign was conducted by the Traffic Awareness Section of the
Roads and Transport Authority (RTA).

The guest speaker for
the event, Ms. Amal Yousef from the Traffic Department of the RTA, spoke to the
students of the various types of distractions one faces while driving. These
distractions are of three types; Visual distractions (eyes off the road),
Cognitive distractions (mind off the road) and the Physical distractions (hands
off the steering wheel).

Ms. Yousef spoke in detail about the
various top distractions that a driver comes across on a daily basis. These
include texting while driving, multitasking, fatigue, children in the car, etc.
Along with this she also discussed the various potential consequences which
often lead to accidents on the road. Though one may be careful while driving
and can handle about 90% of the situation, Ms. Yousef says, “Expect the
unexpected”.

As an advice to the young drivers, Ms.
Yousef says, “Never keep anything on your mind and it is all about one self,
how we control, plan in advance and focus while you drive.”

Lastly she also mentions that more
challenges one faces, makes one into a better skilled driver. The speaker
enthralled the interactive audience with a few funny videos, along with a
message. She also enlisted pointers that would help avoid road distractions such as concentrating more, avoid texting and using mobile while driving, not driving while fatigued, avoid talking to other passengers, listening to distracting music while driving were a few on the list.